Nathaniel l



' (No Model.)

' N. L. BRADLEY.

FILLING DEVICE FOR LAMPS. v No. 563,5v51. Patented July 7, 1896v UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE NATHANIEL L. BRADLEY, OF MERIDEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE BRADLEY & HUBBARD MFG. 00., OF SAME PLACE.

FILLING DEVICE FOR LAMPS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 563,551, dated July 7, 1896.

Application filed une 10, 1 8 9 5.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, NATHANIEL L. BRAD- LEY, of Meriden, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented a new Improvement in Filling Devices for Lamps; and I do hereby declare the following, when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings and the letters of reference marked thereon, to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, and which said drawings constitute part of this specification, and represent, in-

Figure 1, a broken plan view of a lampfount provided with a filling device constructed in accordance with my invention and showing the device in its closed position; Fig. 2, a similar view showing the device in its open position; Fig. 3, a view of the device in vertical section on the line a b of Fig. 1.

My invention relates to an improvement in that class of filling devices for lamps which in their operation are lifted and swung out of the way of the filling-nipple, and swung back and snapped down into the same,instead of being unscrewed therefrom and rescrewed thereinto, the object of my invention being to produce, at a low cost for manufacture, a simple and convenient device of the character described, constructed with particular reference to obviousness and facility of operation.

With these ends in view my invention consists in certain details of construction and combinations of parts, as will be hereinafter described, and pointed out in the claim.

In carrying out my invention, as herein shown, I employ a finger-piece consisting of a button A, which projects upward from the center of the circular filler-cap B, which, as shown, but not necessarily, has a depending circular flange b, which fits into a filling-nipple C, mounted in the usual manner in the top of the lamp-fount D. As herein shown, the finger-button is provided with a threaded stem a, which passes downward through a central opening in the cap and into a threaded opening formed in an inwardly-turned horizontal arm e, located at the upper end of a shaft E, which is thus connected with the filler-cap to one side of the center thereof, and which depends vertically therefrom. As

Serial No. 552,228. (No model.)

- herein shown, a washer e is located between the arm 6 and the inner surface of the cap B, but this is not essential. Nor is it essential that the stem a and the opening of the arm 6 shall be threaded. The shaft E has bearing in a two-armed bracket F, secured by its upper end to the lower edge of the nipple C but other means might be employed for affording a bearing for the shaft, which is vertically movable as well as rotatable in the said bracket. A small spiral spring G, encircling the shaft at a point between the arms of the bracket, impinges at its upper end against the upper arm of the bracket, and at its lower end against a collar 9, secured to the shaft, whereby the spring exerts a constant downward draft upon the shaft, and hence upon the filler-cap.

To operate the device, when made as shown, for filling a lamp-fount, the finger-button is seized and the cap itself lifted vertically against the tension of the spring, until the flange of the cap clears the nipple, after which the cap is swung to one side, so as to clear the nipple, as shown in Fig. 2. To close the nipple, the finger-button is seized and the cap swung around until its flange is brought into registration with the nipple, after which the spring immediately acts to pull the cap down into place.

A finger-piece, whether in the form of a button, as shown, or otherwise, affords an extremely convenient means of operating the cap, which must otherwise be operated by seizing its edges, which do not afford so good a hold as the finger-piece, and are apt to be covered with a film of oil. Furthermore, the finger-piece suggests that in order to operate the filler-cap it must be lifted, which makes the mode of operation of the device obvious beyond oversight. This is an important point, as lamps are in large part filled by servants who are slow of comprehending the simplest mechanism.

It is obvious that in carrying out my invention some changes from the construction herein shown may be made. Thus I do not limit myself to shaping the finger-piece as illustrated, nor to applying it as set forth. Its application may, if desired, be entirely independent of the connection of the shaft with the filler-cap. I would therefore have it understood that I do not limit myself to the exact construction disclosed, but hold myself at liberty to make such changes and alterations as fairly fall within the spirit and scope of my invention.

Having fully described my invention, What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

In a filling device for lamps, the combination with a lamp-fount, of a filling-nipple mounted in the top thereof, a vertically-movable horizontally-swinging filler-cap for the said nipple, a finger-button projecting upward from the cap for lifting the same vertically, and swinging it to one side and away ing Witnesses.

NATHANIEL L. BRADLEY.

\Vitnesses:

XV. R. BOOTH, F. E. WArRoUs. 

